Brightest in the Dark
by Mrs Pettyfer
Summary: "Love is heavy and light, bright and dark, hot and cold, sick and healthy, asleep and awake: it's everything except what it is." - William Shakespeare
1. The Cave

******Category: **Legend of Korra

******Author:** Mrs Pettyfer

******Title: **Brightest in the Dark

******Pairing(s):** Bolin/Jinora, Mako/Korra

**Genre: **Friendship/Romance/Humor

**Rating:** T

**A/N:** Howdy, guys! So I've been wanting to write a story centered around Bolin and Jinora. Don't worry, I'm aware of the age difference, which is why the story will focus on both of them throughout the years. It's only a drabble series, so each chapter will be sort of short, told through Jinora's POV. Originally it was going to be a super long one shot, but I decided to break it down this way instead. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** The LoK world and characters belong to Mike Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, not me.

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**01 - The Cave**

_Ten years_

Jinora sat in the shade of one of the willow trees, trying to ignore the sounds of her sister and brother playing in the temple gardens. She was almost finished with her book, one of her favorites that never got old. She could hardly put it down, even though she knew how it would end. Her mom had long gotten over Jinora's habit for reading at the table—as long as there were no guests—and her dad was constantly making trips to the library.

"Finished already?" Tenzin would say. "You know if you put twice as much time into your studies as you do your stories…."

_Stories_. They were more than just stories! And besides, she considered herself very studious, passing all her classes with more than acceptable marks. Unlike her brother and sister, who had the attention span of a spider-fly. She enjoyed reading about theories, plants, animals and history alike. But it was the world of fiction that she longed for, of adventure and treasure; of princesses locked in towers waiting for a prince to rescue them, and dragons battling in the skies against heartless, evil villains who wanted to take over the world. And the romance—oh, how Jinora _loved_ the romance.

She had read countless books, but one of her favorites was actually a collection of stories, true adventures written by Gran Gran and her friends. Jinora often wondered exactly how tall a platypus bear stood, and what it was like to meet a prince, and did pirates _really_ exist? But she had never seen a platypus bear. She had never met a prince, and she certainly had never seen any pirates.

Jinora had never been anywhere but on the island, Republic City, and the South Pole. They didn't visit the South Pole enough and her dad barely let her go into the city, saying it was much safer on the island.

She looked up from her book and saw about a half dozen White Lotus guards patrolling the gardens. Ikki and Meelo didn't seem to notice, too busy roller racing around the trees. Ever since Korra arrived, security had increased drastically. Even more so with the latest news: Hiroshi Sato was working for Amon.

Jinora did not know much about Mr. Sato, only that he had lots of money and made vehicles. She also didn't know too much about what was going on the city until recently. For the longest time her dad kept most of the details quiet, but Korra was not one to keep secrets.

Korra's friends were staying here now. Asami Sato, the pretty girl who liked the boy Korra liked—Mako—and his younger brother, Bolin. Jinora remembered the first time she saw Mako she thought he looked like one of the heroes from her novels. Tall and handsome, the kind of face that makes you a little embarrassed to be caught looking too long. Bolin was not as tall, and not as handsome, but he had warmth and charisma, and the more Jinora was around him the cuter she thought he was. You know, for an _older_ boy.

"What are you reading?" he would ask, whenever he found her off in a corner absorbed in a book. He did so now. Jinora wondered if he was really interested or just lonely and bored when his friends were busy.

"_The Cave of Two Lovers_," said Jinora, without looking up at him.

"Any good?"

"It's a romantic classic."

He paused a moment and then said, "Wait, didn't you read that last week?"

"Didn't you _probend_ last week?" she said, peeking up at him from the top of her pages. He stood in a patch of sunlight, shadowing her entirely. She couldn't quite make out his face, but when he spoke again he sounded baffled.

"That's not…that's different."

"Not really." She went back to her book.

Bolin plopped down on the ground next to her. "_The Cave of Two Lovers_," he repeated thoughtfully, rubbing his chin. "Never heard of it."

"Then you must not have a strong taste for classic literature," she said,

"Probably not," he said sheepishly. He rarely sounded embarrassed, but he did now. "We didn't really…have books."

Jinora immediately felt guilty and a warm heat brushed across her cheeks. Korra had told her family that Mako and Bolin's parents died when they were young. How could she have been so thoughtless?

"I'm sorry," she said quietly, racked with guilt. "I didn't mean—"

"No, it's okay," he cut in. She felt even worse because he sounded like he was trying to sooth _her_. "So what's with this cave, anyway?" he said, tapping the book in her hands.

_This cave._ It wasn't just _a_ cave! Jinora shook her head. "Well, it started with Oma and Shu, the first two Earthbenders…"

"Oh!" he said excitedly, "this is going to be good—I know it."

Jinora ignored him. "They were from two separate villages—"

"They fall in love, don't they?" Bolin interrupted. "Or maybe they become sworn enemies. What villages are they from? Do they still exist? Can—"

"Would you like to read the story yourself?" Jinora cut in, annoyed.

"No, no," said Bolin. He scooted closer to her and pretended to zip his mouth. "You tell it," he whispered. "I'll just listen."

And he did. It was the first time in a long time that Jinora had told someone one of their stories and they had not only listened, but seemed to enjoy it almost as much as she did.


	2. The Match

**02 - The Match**

_Eleven years_

Jinora always brought a book to the probending matches. And almost always she regretted it. Even with the enclosure of Asami's box, trying to read with a loud, screaming crowd was next to impossible. But the matches could run for a long time, and there were always more than one. Sometimes they'd have to watch three or four matches before the Fire Ferrets were up.

It wasn't that she hated watching probending. She liked it, really. It was educating to see other benders and their techniques. She just liked watching someone she knew and not a bunch of strangers.

"Jinora, look!" Ikki cried, tugging on Jinora's shoulder. "Here come the Fire Ferrets!"

Jinora watched as Bolin and his teammates were lowered into the arena. As always, Bolin made a spectacle of himself. He waved to the crowd, bowed, and even threw a few flowers to some screaming fangirls.

Jinora rolled her eyes and went back to her book. Even so, she found herself peering over the pages to watch as the match went on. As she focused on the footwork, and Bolin took a hit to the chest that sent him swimming, she considered how much harder it would be to hit him if he moved more like an Airbender.

After the match—in which the Fire Ferrets lost—she decided to point that out. Her dad had insisted on giving Bolin a ride home, since his apartment with Mako was on the other side of the city and they had to fly off anyway. Ikki was already sound asleep.

"Have you ever considered learning some Airbending techniques from Korra?" Jinora asked.

Bolin laughed. "Why would I do that? Hello, Earthbender over here."

"Because you move like a gopher bear!" She crossed her arms angrily. "You are bulky and easy to hit. You have no grace or poise and it's detrimental to your team."

He stared at her, and then his mouth curved into a half smile. "How old are you again?"

"Old enough not to trip over my own feet, thank you."

He bristled a little at that. "There was something sticking up…"

"Do you want me to ask Korra or not?"

"She doesn't have time for that," said Bolin. He ran a hand through his hair. "She and Mako have obligations to the city."

Jinora softened a little. It had been almost a year since Amon's defeat. Since then, Mako had joined the police, and Korra worked closely with them. She still lived on the island with their family, but was away even more than her dad, and that was saying something.

"I can teach you," Jinora offered after a moment. Bolin looked up from the hand he was wrapping, his green eyes wide with surprise. For some reason, she blushed. "I mean, I don't have my tattoos yet, but—"

"Are you kidding? I'd love for you to teach me!" Bolin exclaimed happily. His face was bright with excitement, but fell just as suddenly. "Wait, does mean I can't eat meat? Will I have to go through an initiation? Can I wear my own clothes? Are the Airbender tattoos made from tears? And lastly, can I drive a sky bison?"

Jinora blinked, trying to replay the rapid fire questions, when Ikki rose from a dead sleep and held up a finger. "No, no, yes, no, and—"

"_No_," Jinora said firmly.

Bolin stopped by the temple two to three times a week, and Jinora showed him the techniques she had learned. He was just as terrible as Korra, maybe even worse, when it came to the swinging gates. It took him weeks, but he learned to be lighter on his feet. It showed, too, when the Fire Ferrets defeated the Kolau Komodo Rhinos for the first time this year. Bolin was alone on the stage, his teammates in the water, when he maneuvered his way around, like a leaf in the wind, and took down the Rhinos singlehandedly.

He threw his hands up in excitement. The crowd was cheering loudly, and Jinora couldn't help but join in. Bolin looked up and grinned widely at Jinora, mouthing something and pointing to his feet.

_I saw_, she wanted to say. But instead she just smiled and nodded, feeling so proud that the smile stayed with her the rest of the night.

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**A/N:** Thanks for reading and for the support so far! Hope you all enjoy. :)


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